Heat Hampers Calif. Firefighters

Monday, September 27, 1999 - 1 AM

BIG SUR, Calif. (AP) -- Firefighters were hampered by heat and dry brush as they battled a string of fires still burning in the state, but the feared wind gusts that had been forecast Sunday never materialized.

Lightning-sparked fires have burned more than 60,000 acres of northern California's Trinity Alps Wilderness in the past month.

Forecasters had expected wind gusts of 30-40 mph Sunday to further fan the flames, but fire information officer Joe Mazzeo said Sunday afternoon that the wind hadn't become a problem.

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``We're kind of holding our breath up here waiting to see what will happen,'' he said.

One firefighter suffered a concussion Saturday when he was struck by a branch that fell from a tree.

On the central coast, fires that have burned 42,454 acres of the Los Padres National Forest near Big Sur were about a quarter contained Sunday.

The Big Sur-area fires alone have cost more than $27 million to fight since they were sparked by lightning strikes Sept. 8.